More International Flights in/out of Austin

There were 14,800 international boardings at ABIA in 2012, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. That grew to 135,200 in 2016 — an 814 percent growth rate that was second in the nation among airports with at least 10,000 boardings. The data only reflects nonstop commercial flights.

“As a result of events such as South by Southwest and Formula 1, our name recognition and people’s awareness of Austin as a destination has increased exponentially,” said Jim Smith, executive director of ABIA. “Airlines are much more knowledgeable about the Austin market than they were three, four or five years ago.”

Austin is nearing completion of an expansion of the airport (9 new gates, more international gates), and according to the ABJ now features direct flights to: London, Cancun, Toronto, Guadalajara, Frankfurt, Mexico City, and San Jose del Cabo. New flights are starting to Gatwick (London, via Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA), Punta Cana, and a temporary flight from northern Europe to Austin for SXSW is also in the cards.

On top of that, new direct domestic flights keep getting added. Just this week I was speaking with a few folks who fly direct now from Raleigh Durham to Austin (there used to be a direct flight in the 90’s if I recall correctly, when Raleigh was on its way to being a hub, and now there is a direct flight again).

It’s an exciting time for those who travel in and out of Austin regularly, as we do at BP3!